


To Lose Hope

by Aidehn91210



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Sburb Session, Alternate Universe - No Sgrub Session, Humanstuck, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-05-14
Updated: 2014-07-30
Packaged: 2018-01-24 17:44:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 6,785
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1613783
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aidehn91210/pseuds/Aidehn91210
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Your name is Cronus Ampora and you're just an average greaser wannabe kid...at least that's what you tell everyone. In truth, you have a dark secret. And your worst nightmare has come true, it has gotten out. As if you needed boy troubles on top of it!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> ((A/N: I want to send Special thanks to my friend Stefirra for helping me figure out where I’m going with this plot.  
> also, pics of characters can be found here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1XSiltwe_9b61vsgGcFMdw4OVtPeA36SDuCIR0oRY6cQ/edit?usp=sharing  
> also also: as of the start of the story, Mituna does not have brain damage.*  
> also also also, the POV changes a lot but it usually becomes clear quickly whose POV its in  
> PLEASE if you see a typo tell me so i can fix it. I wont be offended.))

**⇒ Be the New Kid**  
Your name is Mituna Captor, and you have just moved to a new town, a new school, and a new life. You turned sixteen last month, and for your birthday, the town bullies decided their gift to you would be to attack you. As soon as the hospital released you, your family moved away for your protection. Luckily, you didn’t suffer much permanent damage. Actually, the only permanent thing is one of your usually blue eye’s iris is now for some reason red. That wasn’t a huge deal though because you could hide it with your bangs.  
It is currently your first day of school at Beforus High and a kind Japanese girl was showing you around. Her english wasn’t very good, but you could understand it enough. The girl, Damara, was showing you where your classes were and telling you about some of the other kids.  
”Who’s that?” you ask, pointing at a guy in a leather jacket hiding in a corner. The guy looked like he belonged in the 50’s with his greased back hair, leather jacket, and (thankfully) unlit cigarette in his mouth.  
“OH. CRONUS AMPORA. YOU WANT ANY FRIENDS, AVOID HIM. HE IS SOCIAL POISON.” came the slightly cold reply from Damara. Suddenly, you weren’t so sure Damara was the right person to be hanging out with.

 **⇒ Be social poison**  
You won’t even dignify that with a response…

 **⇒ Fine. Be the Greaser Kid.**  
You can allow that name. You are now Cronus Ampora. You have only one friend, and you convince yourself you’re okay with that because greasers don’t need friends. You tell yourself this, but in truth, you’re a very lonely person. Being a loner allows you to notice things though. One of these things being the poofy-haired new kid hanging with Damara.  
You watched as poofy-hair said something and Damara stormed off. Unable to resist, you walked over and smiled your sexiest smile.  
“Hey there. My name’s Cronus Ampora. Wvhat’s your name?” you asked, running a hand through poofy’s bangs, quickly taking notice of the red eye.  
“I’m Mituna Captor.” came poofy’s, no, Tuna’s shy reply.  
“Nice to meet you chief. So, wvhat’s wvith the red eye?”  
His face flushed as he lowered his head, “I-I’d rather not talk about that at school…”  
You smirked, checkmate, “Then howv ‘bout after school you wvalk wvith me back to my place and wve talk and get to knowv the other?”  
He smiled and nodded, “Only if you tell me about your accent. It’s...unique.”  
It was now your turn to blush, but you smiled and put an arm around his shoulders, “You got it chief. Nowv, howv about you let me wvalk you to your class?”  
He smiled, albet obviously being a bit uncomfortable with your arm being around him, “Sure, mind on the way telling me your opinions on the people here?”  
“Sure chief, let’s start wvith the chick you wvere hanging with. Damara Megido, I guarantee, out of evweryone you meet, she wvill be the biggest bi-”

 **⇒ Time skip. Be Captorvating.**  
The bell had rung to let school out, and you were on your way to the flagpole where Cronus told you to meet him when you caught sight of probably the most radical thing ever. This thing was a girl with long strawberry-blonde hair and square red sunglasses on a skateboard doing tricks you could only dream of doing. She even had a rad teal jumpsuit like thing to finish her look. Apparently, ms.rad also took notice of you, for she skated over.  
“Hey, you must 3e new here. Love the sr1ped swe4ter, 3y the w4y.”  
Yet again that day, you found yourself blushing, now fiddling with the hem of your yellow and black striped sweater, “Oh, uhm, yeah. My family just moved here after an… incident, at my old town. I’m Mituna Captor.”  
“C4ptor? Do you h4ve a l1ttle brother n4med Sollux?”  
“Yeah, how’d you know?”  
“My l1ttle s1ster’s 3est fr1end 1s fr1ends w1th h1m. He seems r4d!”  
You smile, “Yeah, he’s pretty cool. It’s good to hear he’s making friends...SHIT! I’m so sorry, I have to go. I promised someone I would meet him at the flagpole.”  
She nodded, “1t’s cool. 1’ll 3e off then. T4lk to you l4ter! 3y the w4y, 1’m L4tul4!”  
You smile and go to the flagpole, finding Cronus waiting patiently, a younger boy with a purple cape and blue striped scarf next to him.  
“Hey, Cronus, sorry I’m late. I met this rad chick with a skateboard.”  
“Latula? Yeah, she’s okay. By the way, this is my younger brother Eridan.”  
Eridan waved, but seemed upset.  
“Is he okay?” you ask.  
“I’m fine,” came the annoyed reply from Eridan, “Just annoyed I’m not wwalking Fef home like usual. She’s wwalking home wwith some neww kid computer geek.”  
You growl, “Hey! Don’t call my little brother a geek!”  
He huffs, but falls silent. Cronus shrugs and starts walking off. You and the wizard-looking boy follow. The entire fifteen minute walk is dead silent aside from Cronus’ occasional attempt at jokes and the sound of passing cars.

 

 **⇒Arrive**  
You sit down on Cronus’ bed, the awkward silence from the walk to the Ampora house still lingering in the air.  
“So, chief, tell me about yourself.”  
“Huh?” the request had startled you, “Oh, yeah. Uhm, not much to tell really. I’m an AB honor roll student. I’m fairly social but for some reason don’t make many friends. My dad is a pilot, so he’s away a lot. My little brother, Sollux, is big on tech. I’m into skateboarding...’bout it really…”  
“Wvhat about your eye?”  
“Oh, that.. some kids at my old school beat me up, and when my eye de-swelled enough for me to open it, it was red….we moved shortly after that…”  
“That must suck..”  
“So what’s your story?”  
He blushed, “Ah, yeah, my accent...mine’s kinda like yours in a sense. Wvhen I wvas about six, I had a crush on this chick named Meulin. Unbeknowvnst to me, she wvas currently currently dating a guy named Kurloz. One day, I wvent and started hitting on her. The result wvas him hitting me, hard, wvith a bat. He had just come from little league practice.”  
“That how you got those scars on your forehead?”  
He nodded. You got up, went over, and hugged him.. After a moment of pause, he hugged you back, “Wvhat’s wvith the hug chief? Not that i mind..”  
“No one should ever have to be alone.”  
“I nevwer said i wvas alone..”  
“Your eyes say more than your words.”  
He just smiled and buried his face in your hair.


	2. Chapter 2

**⇒ Two Years Later**

You cross off another day on your calendar, In one month and five days, it will be Tuna’s birthday, and you had something extra special planned. You ran over to your computer to double check that all the reservations were set.

The night would start like a normal birthday, with his party that you were helping to plan. You had gotten him a new skateboard. Custom painted on the bottom with ‘Captor’ in graffiti like print and in his colors (red, blue, and yellow), with red front wheels and blue back wheels. The top of the board was yellow with black stripes.Of course, your plan for the night allotted time for him to use the new board.

After two hours of letting him enjoy all his gifts, you would ask him to accompany you to C&E Dinner. While a formal restaurant would have been more traditional for a date, you knew Tuna-fish would prefer the more casual setting. Also, they made the best desserts.

After dinner, you and him would go to an old drive-in movie theater to watch a movie about a talking bee that befriends a human florist.

You then would have just enough time to go to The Hills to watch the sunset. The only reason The Hills are special is because you can see a beautiful sunset overlooking the ocean on them. It’d be his choice if after you’d stay to star-gaze, or just go back to his place.

You smiled, all the reservations were set and you could pick the board up today too, Tuna had quickly become popular in town, so there were going to be lots of people coming, which meant lots of invites to be made ie. your other task for today.

After you picked up the board you went to the craft store because Tuna wanted the invites to be handmade. You were going to go the extra mile and make each one personalized to whom it was for. Which meant getting things specific to the interests of: Latula, Kurloz (who much to your annoyance had become good friends with Tuna), Horuss Zahhak, Feferi and Meenah Peixes, Nepeta (who is Meulin’s little sister. Thankfully Meulin would be out of town so she wouldn’t be coming too), the Strider brothers, the Vantas twins, and Porrim Maryam. Horuss, Kurloz, Latula, and Porrim would also probably want to bring their siblings (or in Porrim’s case, cousin) with them too, so you had to remember to put ‘Guests allowed.’ on the invites.

As soon as you got home, you set to work on the invites. You absolutely  could not wait for May 22…

 

**⇒  Bee the Birthday Boy**

You were practically buzzing with excitement. Your family and friends had set up the most radical party. Everyone was having fun and the food rocked. You were looking forward to the gifts the most though. You heard there was something extra special planned.

Finally, the time come for gifts.  Sollux had gotten you a video game, Kurloz got you a program to teach you sign language, the Peixes cousins got you some rad swim trunks and beachwear, Horuss got you a tiny robo-horse, and so on. Currently it was Cronus’ turn. You smiled as you took the larger-than-you-expected package. He even wrapped it in mustard yellow. You practically squealed when you tore away the paper to see the custom board. You didn’t care if 18-year-old boys weren’t supposed to squeal, this gift was amazing.

Cronus looked like he was about to say something when Latula ran over, “TUN4! Th4t bo4rd1s so 4w3som3! 4nd you know wh4t m4k3s 3v3n r4dd3r?!”

You chuckled at how excited she was, “What?”

She just smiled and handed you a box. You opened it to find a masculine jumpsuit like Tulip’s but in yellow and black. It even had a matching helmet.

“Tulip, this is so rad!” You smiled and hugged Tulip as she said, “1 w4s 4lso wond3r1ng 1f you would c4r3 to go out on 4 d4t3 w1th me ton1ght?”

You jumped when you heard a crash. Looking, you saw Cronus had dropped a glass cup.

“Cro, you okay?” you asked, wondering what happened.

“Yeah, fine chief. Glass just slipped…”

You nodded, not entirely convinced though.

 

**⇒ Clean Up the Cup**

You were glad that the broom was in the other room, for it gave you time to compose yourself and not sob or flip out. Even in the other room, you could hear Tuna accept Latula’s offer. You sighed and quickly sent a text out to your reservations to cancel. Your new plans for the night were to go home, cry into a pillow, and pray Latula will make Tuna as happy as you had planned to.

 

**⇒ Go Sulk at Home**

You sighed and flopped on your bed.The party had ended, and Tuna & Latula went off for their date. You had almost cried yourself to sleep when your laptop chimed, alerting you to a message on Trollian.

You say up and glanced at the tag: cancerouslyGentle. You internally smiled and sent a ‘hi’ to let them know you were there. You were too distraught to actually smile though.

“Cr9nus? I was just checking in t9 see if y9u were 9kay. What happened at the party must have 6een very triggering f9r y9u. 9h! I d9 h9pe i’m n9t triggering y9u 6y 6ringing it up! Please, st9p me if I d9 trigger y9u in any way!”

“Kan, chill. I’m a;ight, least, I wvill be. Latula will probably make Tunafish vwery happy.” You smile some. Kankri Vantas was your best friend, always has been, so you had told him previously about your crush on Tuna. Though ‘best friend’ didn’t really cover what he was to you. You were tempted to call him something a kid who was a Senior during your Freshman year of high school made up. Moirail. It was like a super best friend or something. A guy named Andrew came up with lots of terms like that. You wish you could call Kannie your moirail, but he would probably freak out by the term considering his hardcore celibacy.

“Y9u sure? I w9uldn’t 6e 6othered if I had t9 c9me 9ver. I d9n’t want y9u upset.” came the reply from your unofficial moirail.

“I’m fine Kannie...but...a movwie night wvould be kinda comforting..” You smiled again when Kan’s quick reply of “6e right 9ver” came, and then he went offline.

You only had to wait five minutes tops before Kan was at your door. You two popped some popcorn, got some soda, and then curled up together on the couch, him laying in front of you, snackage on the table. Usually, you’d watch ‘Grease’ but then Kannie pointed out the awful moral at the end, so you’ve started watching ‘Footloose’ and it’s quickly become your favorite movie. You’ve offered many times before to watch his movies, but he says its easier to comfort you when watching movies you enjoy. Things like that are why you are glad to have Kannie as a friend.

It was comfortable and nice as always. Also like usual, you ended up falling asleep halfway through the movie, enjoying how cozy it was being cuddled up with Kannie.


	3. Chapter 3

**⇒ Wake Up**

“I fell asleep again huh chief?” You say with a chuckle, getting up to take out the movie.

“It appears we b9th did, Cr9nus.”

You smiled, “Ya knowv, I lovwe this movwie, but havwe nevwer seen the end of it.”

“I did 9nce, 6ut when y9u g9 t9 sleep, it’s alm9st hypn9tic. I always end up asleep as well. Feeling 6etter, I presume?”

You nod, “Somewvhat, you’re alwvays good at cheering me up.”

He smiled his usual adorable smile and replied, “What kind 9f friend w9uld I 6e if I wasn’t?”

You chuckled and shrugged, “Hey...it ain’t too late for me to uncancel my reservation..wvanna go get a bite and continue this bro’s night?”

A faint blush dusted itself across his face, “I’d like that. S9unds great Cr9nus.”

You texted Mr.Crocker asking for him to reinstate the reservation.

“You d9n’t mind if we st9p 6y my h9use s9 I can change and gra6 s9me m9ney, d9 y9u?”

“I don’t mind ya changing clothes, but this is my treat Kannie, no need for money.”

“Oh? Well...I still might want 9r need t9 pick s9me stuff up 9n the way back.”

You sigh and nod, “Oh a’ight.”

“Sh9uld we g9?”

You nod and grab your wallet. The two of you walk to Kankri’s place, then to the dinner. The entire time making jokes about Kannie’s sugar obsession. The last joke being how you’ nurse him to health if he got a sugar headache. Kan had changed into a normal t-shirt (you didn’t even know he owned any shirts besides turtlenecks), dark jeans, a jacket, and a bright red scarf.

When you walked into the dinner Kan instantly took notice of how few people were there. You nodded and explained, “This place allows three types of reservations to be made. 1)Just a table or two. 2)Aside from the reservations maker and guests, only high paying customers can get in. And 3)No one but the reservation makers and guests can get in.”

“S9 this is the sec9nd type?”

“Yeah, if i coulda afforded it I wvoulda done type three..”

“Seems like this was pretty special t9 y9u. I ap9l9gize that y9u c9uldn’t d9 this with Mituna.”

“It’s fine...I’m sure he’s happy whatever he and Latula are doing..”

“I supp9se s9, f9rgive me f9r bringing it up. It just seems unfair that y9u have to waste it with me.”

“Time’s nevwer wvasted wvith you Kannie,” You say as the both of you take a seat.

A dorky looking boy with messy black hair, glasses, and an overbite comes over, “Hiya Cronus, what will you and your friend have to drink?”

“I’ll have an iced water, if y9u d9n’t mind.”

“I’ll have usual tea wvith a bit a cherry soda mixed in.” The waiter, John, nodded, handed Kannie a menu, then walked off. You came here a lot so none of the servers questioned your drink anymore. John was a good friend of yours, at least while you were here. You never saw him anywhere but here.. You look up to see Kannie has began looking through the menu.

“See anyfin ya like chief?”

“What d9 y9u usually have?”

“A fish sandwvich.”

He wrinkles his nose some, “9h...d9 they have salad?”

“Should. You a vwegitarian?”

“N9t exactly. I d9n’t appreciate the way animals are treated at certain meat fact9ries and I d9n’t kn9w where this place gets their meat s9 I’d rather just n9t eat it.”

“Fair enough,” You say with smile. The smile quickly vanishes with what you see over Kan’s shoulder though, “Oh…”


	4. Chapter 4

**⇒ See the Problem**

You turn around to see what stole the joy from Cronus’ face and are greeted by the sight of Latula and Mituna walking in.

“9h my...perhaps this is a bit f9rward, but may6e we sh9uld get the f99d t9 g9?”

He nods and you wave the waiter over.

“C9uld we get a fish burger with fries and a salad t9 g9?”

“Sure. May I ask why?” came John’s reply.

“Just s9mewhere t9 6e.”

John smiles and walks away.

“S9, kn9w a g99d place t9 watch the sun set?”

Cronus give a small smile and nods. When John returned, Cro payed for the food and took the to go boxes. Then the two of you silently absconded the restaurant. You grab Cro’s free hand and you run to The Hill with Cronus leading the way.

When you got there, you sat down as Cro set out the food. You were too busy staring in wide-eyed astonishment at the sight before you. The view of the sunset was just breath-taking. “9h my g99dness Cr9nus…” He smiles and the two of you eat in a comfortable silence.

“Cr9nus? Remem6er h9w I 9nce said I ws afraid 9f 69ats?”

“Yeah?”

“It’s times likes these, l99king at sights like this, that makes me want t9 g9 t9 sea anyways.”

He chuckled softly, making you smile.

“I think I’d have y0u drive the 96at. Y9u’d l99k g99d in a captain’s hat….It all seems s9 w9nderful in the9ry, but then I actually get 9n a b9at and suddenly am seasick….Y9u like sailing right?”

”Sort of...Being at sea though...it somehowv makes me feel less than human..”

“What d9 y9u feel like?”

“Dunno. Like..a troll or somefin..”

You nod and google something on your phone, “Hey, there’s a ferry ride ab9ut t9 leave in ten minutes. It’s a tw9 h9ur r9undtrip…”

“But you get seasick chief”

“I’ll 8e 9kay.”

He nods and stands.

“We have t9 hurry th9ugh.”

You quickly throw away the to go box and run down the street and to the docks with Cronus. That is, until you hear a loud thud. You whip around to see what happened, discovering Cronus has managed to faceplant onto the asphalt. You almost began laughing when Cronus sat up and a horrible sight met your eyes.

“Cr9nus?! 9h my g9g are y9u 6kay?! What am I saying?! 9f c9urse y9u aren’t!” Kankri babbled as he rushed to your side.

You brush the hair that fell out of place upon impact out of your face, “I’m fine..” You know exactly what sight must be meeting his eyes right now. You can feel the all too familiar trickle of blood flowing its way down your forehead. Your scars have split open, perfectly mimicking the original wound from the first time you got them. You’ve never understood exactly how it manages to open like that every time, but it does.

“9h my g9g, Cr9nus! We have t9 get y9u t9 a h9spital!” he cried, pulling out his phone. Panic ripped through you faster than lightning, yet your voice stayed calm when you spoke, “I’m fine. I need to go home…”

“N9 n9 n9 n9 n9. Y9u’re c9ming with me t9 the h9spital right n9w~”

“I ain’t goin to a hospital chief.”

“Yes y9u are! D9 N9T argue with me, c9me 9n!” He said as he grabbed your arm and tried to drag. Thankfully for you, he forgot about his phone.

“NO!” you yelled, with a force in your voice you’ve never used on Kannie before, “Just take me home! This isn’t the first they’ve opened like this.”

“”Cr9nus Amp9ra! Y9u’re 6leeding pr9fusely  fr9m the head! I have right t9 c9ncerned! Y9u need t9 be patched up!”

“And i wvill be. AT. HOME.”

“Cr9nus...please...6e reas9na6le..” he remarked, commanding and urgent tone draining some, unlike his grip on your arm which was still firm.

“Besides...heads wvounds alwvays bleed a lot more and seem wvorse than they really are..”

“Cr9nus, I d9 n9t like it when y9u are hurt..” he stated, pulling your arm again, “C9me 9n..”

You sighed, realizing this wasn’t ending well, “No.”

“I’m n9t letting y9u g9 h9me like that!”

“KANKRI VWANTAS I WVILL NOT GO TO A HOSPITAL!”

“Why n9t?!”

“I just can’t okay Kannie?..Nowv take me home..”

“Cr9nus, let s9me9ne care a69ut y9u f9r 9nce!”

You sigh, giving up on talking and just walking home, dragging Kannie with due to him still clutching to your arm. You wonder if he’s even still holding your arm in hopes of dragging you to a hospital, or to keep his own grip on reality and calmness. He sighs as well, realizing he was not winning this battle, and takes his scarf off, handing it over, “Please at least put this t9 the w9und then y9u stu66urn thing.”

You smile and press the scarf to the wound, “Good. Nowv take me home before I faint.”

He begins walking you home, mumbling half to himself, “Y9u’d 6etter 6e glad I’m n9n-vi9lent, 9therwise I’d smack y9u upside y9ur head f9r 6eing s9 w9rris9me…”

“You’s smack me upside my busted head?” you comment with a faint smile that he quickly returns, in just as faint a manner.

“N9 i guess n9t...6ut I’d try..”

Once at your house, Kankri has you sit on the couch as he finds the medical supplies.

“This is incredi6le..” he comments, upon finally seeing just how perfectly the scars split.

“Happens evwery time the open up.” you remark.

“If y9u went t9 a h9spital…” he said as he began stitching up the wounds.

“I said it before, I’ll say it again. I CANNOT go to a hospital.”

He just sighs and continues stitching you up.

“It’s a w9nder y9u aren’t c9mat9se..” you glare at his comment.

“D9n’t give me that l99k.” he finishes the stitching on the first scar as he says this, tying it off and beginning on the second one. The two of you sit in silence as he works, when he’s almost done, you speak, but only to ask, “Can you please go find Dad or Eri? They should know where the shit Rosa made us to numb it is.” His response is a sigh, probably due to the fact you just pointed out this happens a lot. He doesn’t speak until he ties off the stitching on the second scar, “I can’t 6elieve y9u w9n’t g9 t9 a h9spital.”

“It ain’t that i WVON’T Kannie. It’s that I CAN’T.”

“Why? Why can’t y9u?!” he shouts, finally losing his cool, what little he had gained since you got home.

“BECAUSE FRANKLY THE ONLY ONE OF US WVHO LIVWES IN THIS HOUSE THAT IS A CITIZEN OF THE COD FORSAKEN COUNTRY IS ERIDAN AND THAT’S ONLY ‘CAUSE HE WVAS BORN HERE!”


	5. Chapter 5

**⇒ Explode**

Kankri’s face went red, “Y9u c9uld have used my insurance! It isn’t imp9ssible t9 get help, Cr9nus! They’d never have kn9wn!”

“I can’t take that risk! You could pull all the loopholes in the wvorld and I still wvouldn’t take the risk!”

“If y9u need help 6ec9ming a citizen, why c9uldn’t y9u tell me?! Y9u kn8w my dad’s head 9f Humanitarian services and citizenship!”

You sigh and lower your voice some due to the overwhelming numbness that just engulfed you, “No...you don’t get it...the Ampora name is not allowved in this country...Eridan wvent undetected by being registered in his mom’s maiden name. Wve’re only able to be in school because dad let himself basically become a slavwe to Principal Condie…”

“I D9 get it, Cr9nus! I’ve helped 9n cases with pe9ple like y9u since I was nine! I get it, Cr9nus. I understand..wait, WHAT?! Y9u’re joking! That’s illegal!”  
“And so is my family! If ANYONE in the govwernment knewv wvho my dad is, wve’d all probably be exectuted, not just deported.”

“That’s n9t right. This is insanity, I’m calling my dad..” Kankri trailed off, pulling out his phone.

You do the first thing that pops in your head, you lunge at Kankri, trying to snatch the phone away. Unfortunately, Kankri is smaller than you and knows how to use it and he slips free, bolting to the other side of the room.

You snarl, “Kankri Vwantas, I swvear to cod if you tell him or anyone else I wvill NEVWER speak to you again.”

He hung his head slightly as he punched the call button, “Then I guess this is 9ur last c9nversation, 6ecause I have t9 tell him.”

You begin sobbing silently as you hear him say, “Dad?....Yeah, I kn9w it’s past curfew….Please, listen to me!”

It occurs to you Kan is distracted trying to get his dad’s attention, so you bolt over and snatch the phone, chucking it in a random direction, which thankfully is the couch. You might be upset, but you still don’t want to shatter his phone.

“Cr9nus!”

“I’m sorry Kan, but I can’t let you tell anyone, not evwen your dad…” You say, a fresh wave of tears streaming down your face.

“Cr9nus, I can just tell him and he..he never judges. Y9u  really think he w9uldn’t d9 everything in his p9wer t9 help?”

“He’s part of the government. His helping wv9uld be telling them!”

“Why are y9u s9 afraid?!”

“Because I don’t wvant to die!”

“Y9u aren’t g9ing t9 die!”

“I wvill if the govwernment hears!”

Kankri just sighs and walks to the couch, retrieving and pocketing his phone, “I’m g9ing h9mme, Cr9nus.”

“Please don’t tell anyone Kannie, please!”

He doesn’t respond as he leaves the house.

 

**⇒ Abscond**

You faintly hear Cronus screaming a string of obscenities as you shut the door. You hate upsetting him like this, but you know your dad can help. Your thoughts are interrupted as you get jerked back and pinned against the brick of Cronus’ house.

“Ya can’t tell anyone who we are, kid.” comes the deep, forceful tone of Mr.Orpheus, Cronus’ dad.

“I have t9 tell my dad! He can help!”

“I’m dead serious kid, ya can’t tell a soul.”

“I can’t N9T tell him! What d9 y9u think y9u can d9?! H9ld me captive?!”

“No, that would get the cops on my arse in seconds, but I do have a friend that’s got a thing fer keepin little ones quiet.” comes the dark sounding reply that sends chills down your spine and makes you heart pound in your ears, “Are y9u threatening me?!”

“Not now,” he leans down to whisper, “But that can change.”

Your eyes widen, “I-I have t9 g9…”

He releases you and you bolt home. Not once in your life have you ever been this scared of mere words.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ((A/N: tiny chapter sorry, there just wasn't anywhere better to part it at for suspense))

**⇒ Panic**

It’s been almost two months since Kankri learned your family’s secret, two months since you began drifting apart from him, two months since you began drifting closer to Tuna, and two months since you began hating your life.

You were at the mall because Eridan need to go, but Orpheus was busy helping Principal Condesce. Eri has already bought several bags of items from various stores while you sat by following a simple routine: stand, follow, sit, wait. Your life had been mainly routines these past two months, for you couldn’t bring yourself to do anything other than a simple routine. When Kankri walked out the door with your family’s secret, he also walked out with all hope you had left for a happy life. You were but a shell now, only doing what you're told. You chuckle, realizing you finally understand your dad, you’ve become just like him, a mindless, broken pawn.

You know you should be concerned as to where Eri has gotten the money for all this, but you’re too hollow to care. You were pulled from your thoughts by your phone ringing a familiar tune. You knew exactly who it was despite not having heard it in nearly two months. You ignored it. It rang again even after you knew it went to voicemail, pointing out he called again. You sigh and pick up this time, “Wvhat?”

Okay, not the nicest greeting, but can you blame a guy? The response quickly made you regret your coldness though.

“Mituna’s hurt. 6ad.”

You snap your phone shut (Yes, you still use a flip phone. Deal with it.) and shout, “Eri! Drop anything you havwen’t payed for and come on. Wve gotta go, NOWV!” Eridan did as told, probably because of the panic and urgency in your voice. Despite the cashier’s demand you put everything back not just on the floor, the both of you booked out of the store and to the car. After piling into the back with all his bags, Eri barely had time to buckle up before you were zooming out of the parking lot as fast as the speed limit would allow. Your heart was racing a mile a minute, mind consumed with the want and need to get to Tuna fast as possible.

 

 


	7. Chapter 7

** ⇒ Talk to the Albino **

   You sigh and sign in at the front desk for you and your brother, apologizing for him acting how he did, "He just really cares for the Captor boy an is really wworried about about  wwhat happened." 

   The nurse just nodded, clearly in no mood  to chase him down like she should.

    You make your way to Mituna's room where you find Cro slumped in a chair, sobbing and clutching the sheets since Mituna's hands are bandaged and can't be held. You have to guess that he's too upset to notice Latula on the other side of the bed, giving him a weird look. Not being as worried, you looked around and noticed familiar red eyes starring at a wall, "Kar?"

   He looks up, "CRONUS DRAG YOU ALONG?"

  "Yeah, any clue wwhat's goin on?"

   He nods, "YEAH, LATULA AND TEREZI TOLD ME. THERE WAS A FIRE AT THEIR HOUSE. APPARENTLY, THEY HAD A GAS LEAK THAT'S GONE UNDETECTED FOR WHO KNOWS HOW LONG SINCE THEY NEVER COOK. MITUNA WAS COMING OVER FOR DINNER SO LATULA WANTED TO COOK SOMETHING. THEY HAVE ONE OF THOSE OLD OPEN FLAME STOVES YOU KNOW."

   You nod, having heard Terezi complain about the stove before...multiple times.

   "WELL, WHEN THE FIRE ERUPTED, THE FEAR TEMPORARILY MADE LATULA FORGET TEZ IS BLIND, SO SHE JUST RAN OUT THINKING TEZ WOULD GET OUT ON HER OWN AS WELL. MITUNA ARRIVED WHILE LATULA WAS SCREAMING AT THE POLICE TO LET HER GO IN AND GET HER SISTER. NO ONE KNOWS HOW HE DID IT, BUT MITUNA SLIPPED INTO THE HOUSE BEFORE THEY NOTICED HE WAS THERE. HE BARRELED UP THE STEPS TO THE THIRD FLOOR WHERE TEZ WAS, GRABBED HER, AND RAN OUT. HE CAME OUT WITH MULTIPLE THIRD DEGREE BURNS AND MAJOR SMOKE INHALATION. THE MOMENT THE ADRENALINE IN HIS SYSTEM RAN OUT, HE COLLAPSED. HE'S BEEN OUT SINCE."

    You stared in a shocked silence. You would have never pegged a Captor as a hero type. Now you felt awful for trying to make sure Cro and Tuna never got together.

   "ERI? YOU OKAY?"

   "Yeah...guilt's just chewwin out my insides."

   "WHAT?"

  "Cro likes Tuna. He has since nearly a wweek after he movved here...I didn't think Tuna wwas good for Cro though..."

   "AND?..."

   "..an so I told Latula to ask Tuna out at his last birthday party. You knoww, so he'd be taken an maybe Cro wwould get ovver him."

   Then an awful thought hit you; had you not hooked Latula and Mituna up, Tuna wouldn't have gone over to the Pyrope's and none of this would have happened. 

   For the first time since your mom left, you sobbed.


	8. Chapter 8

**⇒ Make a Bad Decision**

     "Th3 doctors s4y h3'll b3 r3l4t1v3ly ok4y." said a vaguely familiar voice. You couldn't quiet pinpoint who it was though due to your mind being in a panicked frenzy. You sniffle, trying to compose youself, and sit up. You hadn't even realized any one else was in the room until just now. Now you felt stupid, of course Latula would be here. She is Tunafish's matesprite after all. You nod in reply, not sure if you are capable of speech right now or not.  
   "You 4nd h1m 4r3 r34lly good fr13nds, huh? 1'll g1v3 you 4 mom3nt 4lon3. 1 should go 34t 4nyw4ys. Send K4rkl3s to g3t m3 1f h3 w4k3s up ok4y?" Latula said, sounding almost uncomfortable with being in the room with you. Fitting of this mood, she absconds out of the room. She knew something she shouldn't, you know this. You aren't quiet sure what though. You didn't have time to think on it though because once she was gone your mind began panicking. She said 'relatively okay' that means something is still wrong.  
    You faintly realize it sounds like Eridan is crying in the hall, but your too numb with your own pain to wonder what's got him upset. Cautiously you brush the hair from Mituna's face, hand shaking as you do so. You were terrified just one small motion could hurt him. With a shaky voice you sing a song you both have chosen as a favorite song, "Been wvorking so hard I'm punching my card Eight hours for wvhat Oh, tell me wvhat I got..."  
    You're voice nearly dies off when you notice his lips twitch some, the first sign of movement besides breathing you've seen from him, but you don't, in fact, it encourages you to continue in the hopes it will somehow wake him up, "I'vwe got this feeling That times are holding me down I'll hit the ceiling Or else I'll tear up this towvn-"  
    "W1ll y0u 5hu7 y0ur 4nn0y1ng f4c3?"  
    You're eyes go wide, he spoke..he sounded..different though. Oh well, he seems to be joking around like his normal self so you think that's a good sign, "Hey chief. You banged yourself up pretty good. Wvhat'd you do, try to fly to the sun or something? You'vwe got evweryone scared shit-less dork."  
    "Wh0 4r3 y0u c4ll1ng 4 d0rk, 455h0l3?!"  
    Okay, that was not a 'joking around like usual' tone. he seriously sounded offended, "Fish bait, wvhy are you being so sensitvwe?"  
    "1 d0n't h4v3 t0 t4k3 th15! L4TUL4!!! L4TUL4!!!!!"  
     You stand, tense and worried, "T-tuna?..."  
     Latula runs in, having clearly heard Tuna screaming, and sends you a death glare, "Wh4t's wrong Tun4?"  
     "Th15 455h0l3 15 b31ng m34n t0 m3."  
     That was it, the sadness, the hurt, the confusion, it all became too much. You snapped.  
      "Ha! Wvell wvhy shouldn't I be? You deservwe it idiot! That's wvhat you are, an idiot! I'm outta here." And with that, you storm from the room, not looking back. You didn't need to, you could still clearly hear Tunafi- no, Mituna, crying even after Latula slammed the door. When you got in your car, you shattered. Slamming a fist into the steering wheel and yelling in both physical and emotional pain. Why had you said that? You've probably just lost Mituna forever. You shake, curling into a ball in the driver's seat and sobbing, hands clutching at, and probably pulling out, your hair.  
     Ten minutes later, you uncurl from your ball, having decided how to calm down. You get out of the car and walk to the nearest gas station, finding and buying what you're looking for. You then return to your car and began relaxing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ((No worries, next chapter you'll see what he's calming down with. Also, sorry for the short chapter.))


	9. Chapter 9

**⇒ Check on Cronus**

   "Cronus?!" You had been too focused on your own misery you didn't notice Cro bolt out of the hospital. It took Kar a minute or two to calm you down and alert you to your brother leaving. Now the two of you were bolting out of the hospital, you to check on Cro, Kar...you guess to help? You weren't sure why he was coming too but you didn't have time to ask.

   You finally get out of the hospital and to where the car is parked, disgusted and disappointed to your brother, your mature and responsible brother, sitting in the car smoking. You knew he always had a cigarette on him, but he swore he would never 'waste it by lighting it up'. And yet, here you were, banging on the car window, demanding an explanation as to why you was smoking.

  When the window finally rolled down you almost regretted wanting it down. All the smoke from in the car rushed out the window, right into your face. You were vaguely aware of Kar behind you taking a few steps back, coughing like mad. You legitimately growled at Cronus, "Wwhat the HELL do you think you're doin'?!"

  "Blowvin off steam, wvhat's it look like? People say cigs can be calmin and lord knowvs I need to mello out right nowv. After all, I did just lose my best friend."

  You were about to reply when Kar interupted you,not yelling like normal and sounding like he couldn't breathe right, "keep smoking up and you'll lose another!"

  "Howv?"

  You were about to ask that as well when it clicked in your mind what he meant and why he was having trouble breathing, "Shit, Kar! Wwhere's your inhaler?!" You didn't need an answer though, you were already running to the passenger door to dig through the glove box for the spare one you keep in the car for when Kar goes out places with you.

  Kar chose to ignore your question to answer Cro's, meanin he probably left it at home. Again. "cronus did you forget my family is known for having bad asthma? if you smoke kankri wont be able to be around you anymore"

  You were amazed Kar could keep such fluid speech while probably becoming light headed from lack of breath. You know he doesn't have as bad of asthma as his dad or brother, but it was still not just a small thing. It made you wonder how often he's talked through an asthma attack. Finally, you found the spare inhaler and toss it to him. He quickly and happily takes a puff from it, looking less strained after that.

  You glance at Cronus who is starring at his still burning cigarette and frowning. "Cronus...is the so called 'relaxing' property of that thing wworth losing the friend you'vve had since you wwere small?..."

 His shoulders slump and he drops the cigarette out the window of the car where Kar quickly stomps it out. "You're right chiefs.." You smile and hug your brother.

  "SHOULD I CALL KANKRI AND HAVE HIM COME FEELINGS JAM WITH YOU, CRONUS?"

  "Should I smack you, Kar? You just had a minor asthma attack and you're already back to yellin?" You practically slap Kar with the words. He merely shrugs and pulls out his phone, texting Kankri. You sigh. No wonder Kar could manage full sentences while during an attack. 

  You glance at Cro once more. Smiling to yourself, you decide he's going to be okay and hopefully won't ever light on of his cigarettes again. You'd feel better if he would stop using them as accessories too but oh well.

  Kankri arrives shortly and you go back inside the hospital with Kar, deciding the two of you could hang with Tez while Cro and Kan talked.


End file.
